Since Paul and I's wedding, we have spent hours, upon hours, organizing all of our wedding gifts, and among those gifts are a couple of fantastically unique cook books.All of paul's family is from Oregon, so I was thrilled with a friend of paul's mom gifted me the junior league of Portland's very own cookbook: From Raindrops to roses. My mom has ranted about the Colorado cache cookbook my whole life, which was compiled by the junior league of Denver, so I knew this cookbook was a true treasure.

I knew I wanted to make dinner using this cookbook, but I wasn't sure what to make, and most of the recipes required seafood. For those of you who have not ventured to north platte, the seafood here is not only abysmal, it is no where to be found. therefore, it took me a while to decide on a recipe, but finally I chose to make the cinco de mayo cilantro grilled chicken and peach and tomato salad with cilantro lime vinaigrette.

Tomato Salad with Cilantro Lime Dressing

Cinco de Mayo Cilantro Grilled Chicken

By the time I finished cooking, it smelled so good and we were so hungry, we ate before we could get any more pictures of the chicken. But rest assured, I will make this again, and I will take pictures this time.

beyond the pictures, this truly was a fantastic meal. The two flavors went well together and bonded on cilantro. It was light, refreshing, but also filling. YUM!

add chicken and marinate for one hour. (I didn't have an hour on my hands, so mine marinated for about 20 minutes and still tasted great)

Grill or broil chicken breasts for 6-8 minutes on each side. (as the chicken was cooking, I reduced the marinade in a skillet on medium heat until it was thick enough to use as a sauce. highly recommend doing this).

Salad: 4 large peaches (we used frozen and it worked great)3 large heirloom tomatoes1 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved (we omitted this)2 small celery stalks cut into 1/2" pieces (I would use less and smaller) 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, plus sprigs for garnish

Directions:Vinaigrette: whisk together all ingredients in a small bowl (I used a small Tupperware and shook the ingredients together). Salad: Halve and pit peaches. Cut halves into quarters. Remove core and stem end of large tomatoes; slice into 1/2 inch rounds. Arrange peaches, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, and celery on a serving plate. Sprinkle with remaining salt and pepper. Coarsely chop cilantro leaves; add to vinaigrette. Pour over salad and garnish with cilantro springs.(I would let the tomatoes marinate in the dressing for at least 20 minutes to let the flavors soak in).